Advisor | June 2024
The world of financial consultancy has been growing for years in terms of assets managed, customer satisfaction and its protagonists: financial consultants.
Like all successful professions, which require experience, strong commitment and motivation, the profession of financial advisor is today mainly the prerogative of professionals over fifty.
It is a figure in line with the demographic trends of longer lifespans and with other professions: the average age of notaries or doctors is slightly higher (+5%), that of artisans is decidedly higher (+15%).
Almost all networks of financial advisors have activated projects and programs to attract young talents capable of guaranteeing natural generational turnover and also satisfying professionals under the age of forty.
To date, financial advisors under forty years of age with an active mandate are around 10%, this is a percentage destined to grow by a further five percent in the coming years thanks to the initiatives implemented by the most active networks in terms of training of young people.
It is very interesting to understand how the consultant under forty years old differs from his counterpart over fifty. There are five main differences that emerge from FINER’s analyses.
The first: the motivation of younger consultants is on average higher (+17%) than that of more senior ones. This is also an aspect inherent to seniority in the profession characterized by greater initial enthusiasm which then naturally evolves into a more detached and lucid attitude.
The second difference lies in the greater proactivity in contacting customers and seeking new ones which characterizes financial advisors under forty (+21%) compared to those over fifty. This is consistent with a business that is in its infancy and needs to consolidate its customer portfolio.
The third difference lies in the greater efficiency (+12%) in the organization of the working day in relation to the processing of customer management procedures compared to the principal thanks to the greater familiarity and use of digital media.
The fourth element that differentiates consultants under forty years old is the greater loyalty to their company (+19%), certainly influenced by a greater enthusiasm that characterizes any individual who is at the beginning of their career.
The fifth element is the most interesting from an anthropological point of view: young professionals are more attentive to a fair balance between private and working life (+50%).
This aspect can be explained, on the one hand, by a phase of the life cycle in which a family is generally created and, on the other, by belonging to a generation capable of optimizing and making one’s work more efficient also thanks to greater familiarity with digital media.
The profile of consultants under 40 therefore differs in almost everything from that of their counterparts over fifty, except for one thing: orientation and tenacity in pursuing the achievement of results.
The integration between different generations and the inclusion of young talents in each company is a necessary condition for its survival, and financial advisor networks have been aware of this for some time.
Nicola Ronchetti